Saudi Arabia’s Desperate Attempt at Innocence

Well, what would you expect?

Saudi Arabia, after the brutal murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi five years ago has various strategies underway, including what can be described as "greenwashing" their reputation through the acquisition of sports teams. After picking up a Brit football team here and financing a women’s sports team there, the latest sham is something they call LIV Golf.

LIV Golf may be live, but it’s anything but golf

What they created was a parody of the game, played by teams as well as individuals and only three rounds of golf instead of the PGA regulation four. After all, who needs that old 72-hole regulation that Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods played when setting all those records?

Of course LIV needed some name players out there, so they bought a bunch. Phil Nicholson, Bryson DeChambeau and Dustin are said each to have reportedly received over $100 million to defect to LIV Golf. Money talks, but it don’t play 72 holes.

There’s really nothing new about greenwashing

It began back when the big oil companies began to boast about how many solar initiatives they supported, but now it’s spread to acquiring high-profile sports franchises to project an progressive image of social responsibility. While those efforts appeal to some, it’s crucial to remember that 17 of the 19  9-11 terrorists were Saudi Arabian, Khashoggi was brutally murdered on the orders of Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, Crown Prince of Saudi and the bloke who runs the joint.

Then there’s the mildly embarrassing Saudi madrassas—the schools that preach death to all who are not Muslim and single out the West at the top of that list. Did I mention that America sells hundreds of billions of dollars in military equipment the these murderous characters? Yep, they do.

The PGA defectors, Nicholson and the bunch want to let bygones be bygones

(Forbes) Ancer, DeChambeau and Wolff bluntly explained their motive for joining the new outfit during a joint press conference: money. DeChambeau said his decision was a “personal business decision,” Wolff called it a “money thing,” and Ancer said “getting paid bigger, better” convinced him. Though not as strongly worded, DeChambeau echoed Michelson’s comments about looking past the Saudi government’s history of human rights violations, saying he hopes “people will see the good that they are doing and what they are trying to accomplish, rather than looking at the bad that's happened before.”

I guess that ‘good that they are doing’ includes bombing the shit out of Yemen and imprisoning any Saudi women who think it might be nice to drive a car or go shopping without a man to ‘guard their womanhood.’

As Liza Minelli insists, “Money makes the world go around”

Some say that “Saudi Arabia's sports team acquisitions have generated controversy and raised questions about the integrity of the sports industry.”

Really? The integrity of the sports industry. You mean those multi-billionaires who flim-flam cities into building them stadiums at public expense and attach tax breaks for the pleasure of selling that public an average $150 NFL ticket? Or perhaps you mean FIFA, the criminal enterprise that represents the international football (soccer) mafia.

The Role of the International Community

The international community has a vital role to play in holding Saudi Arabia accountable for its actions.

Oh please, be still my heart for vital roles.

Governments, human rights organizations, and sports bodies should prioritize ethical considerations when evaluating potential investors or bidders for sports franchises. This entails conducting thorough due diligence to assess the track record of prospective owners, including their respect for human rights, freedom of the press, and commitment to upholding international norms and values.

Exactly. Just as they hold themselves accountable for homelessness, crime on the streets and that nasty old global warming. I can’t tell you often enough how in favor I am for accountability. Presidents, members of Congress, rogue police and the occasional mental case that shoots up a school or a mall—they’re all at the very top of my accountability list.

But even I—with all my schemes and diagrams—become senseless with outrage when bad guys take over my favorite sports teams. Even if you’ve never swung a club, this nonsense must stop or we face the eminent danger of Rory McIlroy retiring…